Page 33 of Surrender: XXX Maxim
Somewhere luxurious, seemingly private, and far from civilization. Around us lies a courtyard enclosed by palm trees and white stone architecture. A path leads off into what seems to be a garden, bathed in shadow. I can just make out a gurgling marble fountain and countless, sprawling plants in the fading daylight.
Behind me looms the real attraction, however. Towering at least three stories, the structure is composed of the same white stone as the courtyard—a mansion expensive enough to star on the cover of some fancy billionaire magazine—the exotic beach home edition. Massive windows promise a view of the ocean I can see looming beyond the trees.
It’s breathtaking.
“You and your family have the run of the place,” Lucius announces, drawing up beside me. He eyes the house objectively, stroking his chin. “There is a pool. A courtyard. Plenty of rooms. Several acres of property for recreation—”
“I just want to see them,” I blurt out, starting forward. “I need to see them.”
A passing figure manages to beat me to the front door. Maxim. He opens it without a word to me, revealing a wide entryway.
I barely register the layout at all. I can’t fuckingbreatheuntil several figures rush toward me all at once, shouting my name. Before I know it, I’m assaulted by all six kids, and I gladly allow myself to be crushed within the rush of hugs and the barrage of questioning.
I can’t stop touching them. Feeling them—and they hold me even tighter in return. A part of me shatters at that fact. I did this to them. I put them in the middle of this mess.
And I refuse to fail them ever again.
Fresh tears slide down my cheeks, obscuring my vision as I bury my face in Ainsley’s hair, inhaling her scent. Even so, I’m painfully aware of a certain figure who keeps his distance from the fray, eventually leaving the vicinity altogether. His absence reinforces the truth I think we both know at heart, and the ache in my chest could be resignation more than anything else.
Thisis where I belong.
With my family—not him, a man who sees those around him as tools...
And nothing more.
